Oldest Child Bones Found
Just west of Marrakech in Morocco, a group of international scientists are collaborating on an amazing discovery that suggests early homo sapiens had a longer childhood than what was once thought. A prolonged childhood, which separates humans from others in the animal kingdom, is one essential element in not only the survival, but also the development of complex societies.
The fossil is believed to be that of an eight-year-old child and represent an important step in the development of our modern society. Where scientists once rooted important occurrences in the modern development of humans to occur in East Africa, it might be closer to Morocco that modern man developed.
Using synchrotron light, which is a type of X-ray, the teeth of the young boy are quite similar to that of an eight-year-old modern human. Much like trees that show their age with annual rings, so do teeth that show microscopic growth lines over time. The findings suggest that childhood was a much prevalent attribute to societies hundreds of thousands of years ago.
The theory that childhood and society go hand in hand is not a new one. Anthropologists have been studying the connection for years, but were never sure when the homo erectus began evolving closer to homo saphiens in their developmental years. For modern societal anthropologists, the study might show how important a childhood full of learning, growth, and opportunity effects adulthood.
Ultimately, the scientists, anthropologists, and organizations involved hope to get a better idea of when, where, and at what stage humans started acting as we do in our modern way, with complex upright bodies and complex interpersonal and social behaviors.
Tanya Smith with the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany was behind the study, along with many other scientific organizations, including the Mohammed V University in Rabat. National Geographic has become very interested in the study and released information about the other groups’ findings.
Brought to you by: Morocco News by Journey Beyond Travel
Source: National Geographic Online
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